


Firsts

by InterNutter



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Alternate Universe, Childhood, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-12
Updated: 2013-06-12
Packaged: 2017-12-14 18:21:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/839922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InterNutter/pseuds/InterNutter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What if Odo had been found at the same time as the wormhole?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Firsts

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story. Please don't nick it.

AUVerse: What if Odo had been found at the same time as the wormhole?

Firsts  
InterNutter

First Contact

Debris sweeping was fast becoming the most boring job, but Kira did it because it beat the living crap out of Bashir's puppy-like enthusiasm when she wanted help sleeping.  
And, face it, they needed the resources for repairs.  
The latest object to beam into the cargo hold looked like half a life pod, shattered by collisions ancient and new. Alien design. No telling how old it was. And, since it rattled when she moved it, Kira scanned for pockets, panels and storage areas.  
There was something inside. A little bit of leverage and she extracted a peculiar container from within.  
Scans indicated some kind of organics mingled with silicates in a complicated structure. It gave the computer conniptions, because it declared the stuff both alive and not-alive at the same time.  
"Dax is going to love *this*," she told herself.

"It looks like orange jello," said Sisko.  
"It's a cohesive viscous fluid," said Dax. "That has DNA."  
"But is it alive?"  
"That's... where my scanners are having trouble. It 'consumes' low-level RF radiation, and it moved away from a minor electical flaw in one of my instruments... I'm starting to think it might be."  
Sisko peered at the goop.  
"Right now, I'm testing which frequencies are its favourites. It'll move to a patch I've created that includes the whole spectrum... so I wondered if it..."  
"Liked a particular taste?"  
The light underneath separated into different circles around the rim.  
"And now... reducing the power to the central source."  
The goo spread outwards. Touched the circles simultaneously... and 'picked' five of them to expand into.  
Sisko laughed. "Looks we have some flavours, old man."  
Dax turned off the 'rejected' frequencies and bathed the creature with a mix of its favourites.  
"Welcome to the Alpha Quadrant," he told the stuff.  
"*Ben*..."  
"Just in case."

First Move

"...thinking that you might be able to move yourself into different shapes," Dax was saying.  
"Are you talking to it, now?" said Kira. She couldn't help smiling.  
"I like to think out loud," Dax said. "Besides, I'm starting to think it can understand me."  
"Really. It's a lump of goo. You don't even know it's really alive."  
"Stimulus and response," said Dax.  
Kira, like almost all who came to peer at the goo, prodded it with her finger.  
It formed a finger out of orange goo and poked back.  
"Whoa. Did you *see* that?"  
"It *does* have morphogenic capabilities," Dax smiled. "Now we're going to *have* to work on shapes." She went to the replicator and dialled up a cube-shaped mould of the same volume as the creature. She poured it out of the Krokan petri beaker and into the cube.  
"What's with the markings on the side?"  
"When I realised it was growing, I decided to start keeping track." The beaker went down beside the array where most of the movement experiments had been going on. She placed the full cube in the middle. "Now... to configure the sensors to this shape..."  
"How are you gonna make it stay like that?"  
"Rewards work well," said Dax. "In this case, I'm using some cold blue light to delineate its borders. The more light it interrupts, the less 'food' it gets. If I can get it to make a perfect cube, it'll get double rewards."  
"And if it can't?"  
"I think it can." Dax overturned the mould. "Stay inside the blue lights, now."  
Kira chuckled and rolled her eyes.  
Dax removed the mould. The goo slumped, then quickly resumed the cube shape.  
"Well done," Dax cooed. "Good job." She turned off the blue lights and bathed it with reward radiation.  
"It's not... melting."  
"Maybe it likes being a cube." Dax started a timer and popped the cube into the beaker. "Computer, monitor the subject and stop the timer when it resumes its normal liquid state."  
The computer chirped it's compliance.  
"Past time we had lunch," said Kira. She waved at the cube. "Enjoy yourself, Adar."  
"Adar?"  
"It's Bajoran for 'found'." She shrugged. "If you're going to talk to it, you might as well give it a name."  
"Let's get that lunch with champagne," Dax grinned. "I think that was a breakthrough moment."  
"For it or me?"  
Both women laughed.

The shape fascinated, but was wearing, too. It held until it could hold no more, and relaxed into its container.  
Something chirped, but the creature ignored it. This place was full of chirps and bells and other noises. It had taken some time to sort 'noise' from 'not-noise', and more time to divine meaning from the not-noise. It was still complicated, but there were signs it was a language.  
There were call-words that the strange solid creatures used to recognise each other. The 'Dax' word meant the creature with a black body and spots either side of its talking-thing. The 'Kira' was the reddish one with the stripes across a small part of its talking-thing. There were others. The 'Bashir' and the 'Sisko' and the one that was called three names at once. Was it 'Miles' or 'Chief' or 'O'Brien'? It answered to all three without prejudice.  
And the Sisko had a peculiar habit of calling the Dax 'Old-man'.  
Now one of them had called it 'Adar'.  
Was this acceptance or... something else?  
Had the Kira used its name, or told it what it was?  
No matter. It had to test them. See if they were truly intelligent or just... things that did stuff.  
The creature contemplated its environment. It could be different things. Should it be a cube again?  
It considered the things the Dax did. It pressed symbols on the big grey thing with shiny parts. It made not-noises at the other solid creatures. It made noises with the smaller flat grey things... and it spoke to the creature.  
And it put the creature in *this* container. Marked *this* container.  
This container was important. Everything else was unmarked. Naked of the Dax's individual attention and markings. There was even a special tool just for the purpose. It crawled out, examining every detail.  
Translucent material. Opaque markings just so. It learned the shape inside and out...  
And made itself into an exact copy, right beside it.  
The creatures came back, making their noises.  
"...and then *she* said, 'that's not a ral'quog; that's my janchyn'."  
More noises, the ones associated with the display of wider talking-things.  
The Kira stopped its display first. "Uh oh. Where's Adar?"  
"Computer, current location of silicate life form?"  
"Life form is in Science Lab One."  
The Kira was looking under things. "Would it move away from food? Are you sure you left the feeder on?"  
"It's still on," said the Dax. "And its container is right... where..."  
"What?" said the Kira.  
"Look at the container."  
The Kira came over. Peered at one, then the other. "You don't have a spare, do you?"  
"I think Adar's sending us a message," said the Dax.  
"It even got your handwriting."  
"I left the original in the middle..." it tapped the creature. "Adar?"  
It melted, poured itself back into the container.  
"This is going to be fun," said the Dax. "We have a sentient shape-shifter who likes to play hide-and-seek."

First Word

"Building blocks? Modular construction kits? This lab is fast becoming a play room, old man..."  
"Something between the two. Adar's been trying to imitate us, but... the flesh is weak. I thought simpler forms might help it."  
"Hence the toys."  
The shapeshifter known as Adar was fitting blocks together, then copying the resultant shape.  
"I'm sure he understands us," said Dax.  
"He?"  
"Okay, I'm projecting. It's hard not to. Adar can manage a few simple sounds. He even argues with me."  
"Adar... argues."  
"I tried to take away the old petri beaker after he outgrew it. Adar formed a tentacle and took it out of my hands. I *swear* he tried to say 'mine'." Dax replayed the sound.  
"Sounds a lot like it. We can't assume. We can't afford to assume. For all we know, this is a kind of... mimicking animal."  
"Well I'm treating it as sentient until undeniable proof otherwise."  
Adar was trying to make something. A globe attached to a rectangular prism, attached to cylinders. It copied the shape, then... improvised.  
One of the construction block toys had modular humanoid parts, like hands and feet. These appeared where the model did not have them. Basic representations of eyes appeared on the spherical head. And a mouth.  
Adar blinked and smiled.  
"Whoah," said Dax.  
"Hello," said Sisko.  
The being mimed the words.  
"You're trying to figure it out, aren't you, Adar?"  
Nod.  
"That's the first time he's done that, Ben." Dax moved closer, put a mitten-claw hand over her throat. "Feel the vibration? We humanoids make simple sounds here," she let go to illustrate with a suddenly exaggerated mouth, "And refine them here."  
"Computer, display a transparent reconstruction of humanoid speech. Include all phonemes synched with the animation."  
"Working," said the computer.  
"Up here," said Dax, pointing.  
Adar appeared to watch, and listen to the display.  
"Mmmm," said Adar. "Mmmmaaaaahhh."  
_I hope he doesn't say 'Mommy',_ thought Dax.  
"LLlllaaaahh bah dah tah pah kah.... Eh ih oh oooo...huh..."  
"Maybe..." ventured Dax.  
"Ssssissssko. Daxsssss. Ayyydarr." His paw/claw indicated each individual. "Good job?"  
"Very good job," cooed Dax.  
Adar held out a hand.  
"Dax..." Sisko glared at her.  
"He can't have *just* been subsisting on RF radiation, so... I encouraged him to try a few silicate foods. And treats." She replicated small crystals and handed them to Adar. "I've been giving him candy when he's been good."  
"Adar want be good," said Adar.  
"That was a whole sentance," said Sisko.  
Dax replicated a far more nutritious treat. "Have you been holding out on me, Adar?"  
"Adar want talk, long time," its attention was rivetted on the crystal. "Adar try learn. Adar listen. Adar want, no good job, long time. Adar... happy. Is good job now."  
Dax gave it the crystal treat.  
"Objectives, memory," Sisko murmured. "Limited vocabulary, but we can work on that. Adar... do you remember where you came from? Before we met you?"  
Adar shook its head. "No good job." It offered the half-consumed crystal.  
"No, I won't take that from you. I was just... hoping you could tell us about your people."  
"Do you remember anything from before?"  
"Was dark," said Adar. "Then... wasn't."

First Escape

Adar was Being a datapadd when someone new entered the lab. It was shorter than the humanoids it was used to. Adar made its best effort at a humanoid shape while the odd being crept around the lab.  
"What are you doing?"  
The creature whirled and shrieked. "I didn't touch anything! I got lost while looking for my brother's inventory." It recovered its wits. "Wwwww-what are you?"  
Adar had no other answer but, "Adar."  
"I need something made of tarellium. About so long."  
"What's tarellium?"  
The new being sighed. Made a dismissive gesture. "What are *you* doing in here?"  
"I live here."  
The new being stared. Blinked. "No. That's wrong. People don't belong in labs." And then it walked over and picked Adar up. "You're coming with me."

Quark glared at his useless brother. "I send you to go scavenging and you bring me a child."  
"He can be invisible."  
"No I can't," said the kid.  
"I was in the science lab and it wasn't there, and all of a sudden it was," said Rom.  
"Fine. Show me how you be invisible, kid."  
The kid, plunked on the bar, looked around and then melted into the shape of a nearby bottle. It became an exact duplicate.  
Quark could hear the latinum raining in. "Okay, come on out."  
The kid re-shaped itself. "Good job?"  
"Tell me, kid..."  
"Adar."  
"Adar... have you ever considered a career in the entertainment business?"  
"En... ter... tain... ment?"  
Quark launched into his sales patter, making show biz sound like the greatest adventure in the universe. He got as far as bringing out the contract when Security strode in.  
"There he is. *Quark*! I am going to *enjoy* incarcerating you."  
"Me? I'm the victim, here."  
Adar piped up. "Uncle Quark is going to show me the exciting world of the entertainment industry. It sounds like a nice planet."  
Moryn picked the kid up. "'Uncle' Quark was going to use you for his own profit. Come on. Let's get you back to Dax."  
"I want to see," protested Adar.  
"See?"  
"Everything."

"Is that why you didn't say anything to Rom? You wanted to see?"  
"Rom... said it was wrong for me to be in a lab. And... there's lots outside. Shapes and colours and... people. I want to see. I want to learn."  
Dax sighed and picked him up, wrapping him in her arms. "I'm sorry. You *should* be seeing the world. I'm going to move you to my quarters and start treating you like another person instead of an experiment."  
"I... thought you were."  
Her eyes were leaking. "I got wrapped up in studying you. I'm sorry. I'll make it better. I promise."

First Day Home

'Better' meant moving from the lab to Dax's quarters. And a new container that was soft and yielding *and* fed him his favourite radiations. And there was a carry-pouch that he could rest in while Dax wore it, or poke his head out of it and peer around curiously at the fascinating world Outside the Lab.  
There were construction toys and padds full of games and so *so* many things to learn about.  
And a big circle in the wall with black and little lights.  
Adar pointed. "What's that?"  
"That's a window. It lets us see outside. Want to see?"  
Eager nodding. "Yes. See."  
She carried him over. There was more black outside the window. Everywhere. And a brighter light off to the distance. "What's that?"  
"That's the Bajoran sun. It only looks small because it's far away."  
"Are all the lights... suns?"  
"Stars. Yes. All the stars are suns. Some of them are thousands of light years away."  
"Light years?"  
"It's a distance. The amount of space light can travel in one year. It's a long way to go."  
Adar pointed to the bright light. "Bajor."  
"Almost. Bajor's actually on the other side of the sun from us, right now."  
"Bajor is... home for Bajorans. Like Major Kira?"  
"That's right."  
"Where is Dax home?"  
"We can't see it from here, but the Trill homeworld is..." she pointed, "that way. Next to the bluish star."  
"Where is Sisko home?"  
"Sisko's home. The Siskos are Terrans, and their homeworld is roughly in *that* direction," she pointed at a wall. "Their star, called Sol, is far too faint to be seen from here. Most habitable planets don't have very bright suns."  
"Where is O'Brien home?"  
"They're also Terrans, Adar," Dax laughed. "Now I bet you'd love to learn how to read. Then you can find out about everything all by yourself. Would that be good?"  
Adar grinned. "Yeah!"  
Dax showed him how the alphabet worked, familliarised him with the codification of her language. Or rather, the Terran language.  
"But," he protested. "You speak different. And so do the Bajorans."  
"Oh, that's right. You don't have a universal translator, yet. I'll get Julian to fix that. No wonder your grammar is all over the place, sometimes."  
"But what if I want to learn to speak different?"  
"You still can."  
She filled his why's with answers until his form wearied him.  
"I have a question for you, Adar."  
"Yes?"  
"Can you hear when you're a liquid?"  
"Yes..."  
"Then I can help you learn quicker. I can rig the speakers in your sleep pouch to play you the encyclopedia galactica. It'll tell you everything about everything."  
"Thank you."

First Steps

Dax watched as Adar formed his shape. He always finished in a standing position, surveyed his work in a nearby mirror, then took one step and nearly fell flat on his face. Thereafter, he would crawl in a gait all his own.  
She found it natural to be on the floor with him, exploring his toys with him or answering his 'why's with equal amusement.  
"Are you trying to walk?" she asked.  
"You make it look so easy."  
"Only because we've had years of practice. Humanoid infants don't learn to walk until they're months old." She called up motion studies. Babies crawling, babies furniture-walking, and babies taking their first, wobbly steps. "Like you, they don't get very far in the beginning."  
"Should I wait?"  
"You want to try, you can keep trying. Just... make sure you have something to grab, just in case."  
Adar used her. Or, more precisely, her ponytail.  
"Hey!"  
He swapped grips to her uniform. "That was part of you? And not this?"  
"My hair is part of me, but it's not exactly... sensitive. It only hurts when it's pulled," Dax explained. "Only the roots are alive. This," she wiggled her sleeve, "is clothing. I wear it to help protect my body from things. And because it's socially acceptable to wear clothing. I can take it off when I want to, change what I wear, or in order to clean myself." She sat up to help him sidle along.  
"In the sonic shower."  
"That's right."  
"Why don't I clean?"  
"Well... I don't know how the sonic scrubbers would effect you. I couldn't see any positive or negative reactions to sound waves when you were in the lab..."  
He let go and shakily walked a few steps towards the bathroom. "Let's see now. I can tell you."

First Trip Out

There was definitely a hurried quality to Adar. As if he felt in a hurry to learn everything about everything. The audio version of the Encyclopedia Galactica had only done so much. Adar needed to see and feel for himself. And now that he could walk, he had developed a wide independent streak that casually ignored his ability to maintain a humanoid shape.  
And, like all small children everywhere, had adopted the motto of Rikki Tikki Tavi... Run and find out.  
"What's in there?" and his grip on her fingers slipped away again.  
"Adar..." Dax sighed, striding after him. He'd gone into the temple. She began to inwardly petition the Prophets that he wouldn't get into too much trouble.

"...to maintain the simple curiosity and wonder of a child," said Vedek Reets. "In this way we discover the universe anew, and--"  
{splish}  
Kira grinned in spite of herself. One of those selfsame simply curious children had wandered in from the Promenade and, like all small children, had been magnetically drawn to the reflecting pool. Some fellow Bajorans around her were smirking, too.  
The little boy seemed content making ripples, so Vedek Reets soldiered on.  
Any minute now, an anxious Mama would hustle in and whisper the child out betwixt clenched teeth.  
{splash splash sploosh}  
Kira checked. Yup. The kid had gone wholesale into the pool. Reets plucked the waterlogged kid out without missing a beat. Like all the other loyal worshippers, she sprained something trying not to laugh. Badly restrained giggles erupted in the temple.  
Especially when the kid went straight back to the pool like an arrow to a target.  
"Adar..." that anxious whisper belonged to Dax.  
{plish splash ploonk splish} "Lookit! 'S like me an' not!"  
Dax scooped him up with a cringing, "Sorry..."  
"Hey, it's Aunty Nerys! Hiii!"  
Kira blushed and waved to him as Dax carried him off. This was going to mean she'd have to join in during the inevitable lecture on respecting other society's beliefs. And possibly a side-lecture about volume control.  
It was hard to believe he was only a few months old. Or a few months' experienced, since the time he'd spent in a glorified bottle was impossible to nail down.  
Just as it was nigh-impossible to recognize him from one week to the next. He refined and re-shaped his form like most folks changed their underwear. Kira had become used to recognizing him by his personality.  
Adar would get her side of the lecture in a half hour. Three quarters, if some members of the flock didn't stop giggling.

First Day of School

"We have a new student, today," said Mrs O'Brien. "Say 'hello' to Adar."  
"Hello Adar," droned ten semi-bored kids.

**Author's Note:**

> Trying very hard to figure out what kind of chaos would be happening in school. Would he miss 'mama' Dax? Get into a fight? Get disturbed about something we consider normal?
> 
> AAAAIIIGHH!


End file.
